IPL 2021: Team-wise one 'X-Factor' player in the season

5. Rishabh Pant (Delhi Capitals)

Rishabh Pant hasn’t done anything wrong in the last few months. After getting dropped from the white-ball squad of India, the talented wicketkeeper batsman has made his roaring comeback, on the back of some match-changing performances in red-ball cricket. Seeing his form with the bat, Delhi Capitals fans would be upon their feet, hoping for something similar in the IPL. 

Pant didn’t have the greatest of IPL season in 2020, which was also one of the reasons behind his axing from ODI and T20I teams. He managed 343 runs at an average of 31.18, but he did seem to have found some form with the bat in the final, where he scored 56 runs off 38 balls. In addition to this, fans would remember the 2018 and 2019 season, where Pant was at his best. 

In the 2019 season, we saw him scoring 488 runs, while in 2018, he had run havoc on opposition bowlers, scoring 684 runs with a strike rate of 173.60. If he brings his A-form to this tournament, Delhi would be confident to better their runners-up finish from the 2020 edition. He will bat in the middle-order, where his role would be quite crucial and could be the decisive factor.